Oaka, Alena. 2025. Far Right In the Czech Republic. Doctoral thesis, Goldsmiths, University of London [Thesis]

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Abstract or Description

Far-right or extreme right has been very much on the rise in recent years, having an impact on the political scene in much of the western world, whether by giving the direction to the public discourse or entering politics directly. This has led to wide-spread concern within the political establishment as well as in the mass media. In the Czech Republic the far right is on the fringe of the political scene, nonetheless its discourse has also made big inroads into the public discourse. This thesis takes into account broader historical circumstances in order to find an explanation for a seeming paradox of contemporary Czech nationalism, namely its association with, incorporation of and admiration of the German element, something Czech nationalists traditionally defined themselves against. Through interviews with members and sympathisers of the Workers Party for Social Justice, an analysis of their website as well as that of various underground entities, through examination of the responses to the far right from the state, but above all through participant observation I argue that whilst the far right is villified by the media and the general population alike, its discourse as well as lifestyle of its members is widespread, albeit in a more nuanced or disguised form. Members and sympathisers of the Czech far right are well integrated into the society, rather than being the pathological element the rest of the population wishes them to be. I also demonstrate that the hybrid form of Czech nationalism, incorporating, even privileging, the German element within ‘Czechness‘ is an attempt to forge a new, updated form of nationalism that fits new political realities. Rather than approaching the far right as pathology, something separate from the rest of the society, I urge a dispassionate approach based on direct contact with the people studied. By interrogating and re-thinking current basic assumptions, the thesis aims to arrive at a more meaningful understanding of the widespread and disturbing phenomemon the new right represents.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Identification Number (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.25602/GOLD.00039388
Keywords:	Far Right Politics Czech Republic Nationalism Workers Party for Social Justice Political Anthropology Participant Observation Identity and Nationalism Post-Socialist Europe Ethnography Right-Wing Extremism Political Discourse Populism Cultural Identity Social Movements Political Violence
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Anthropology
Date:	31 July 2025
Item ID:	39388
Date Deposited:	14 Aug 2025 13:19
Last Modified:	14 Aug 2025 13:26
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/39388

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